Kidman, Urban tie knot in lavish wedding

A mystery honeymoon after ‘touching, solemn’ ceremony in Australia

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Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban holds hands following their wedding ceremony at Cardinal Cerretti Memorial Chapel in Sydney on Sunday. Kidman and Urban are rumored to be planning a honeymoon in Fiji before returning to Urban's home in Nashville.

SYDNEY, Australia — Australia’s hottest celebrity couple, Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, jetted out of Sydney on Monday, likely bound for a secluded honeymoon getaway on the golden sands of the South Pacific.

The Oscar-winning actress exchanged vows with the Grammy award-winning country music star in a tearful, candlelit ceremony overlooking the Pacific late Sunday.

The newlyweds kept a low-profile Monday, emerging only to have lunch with family at a luxury waterfront hotel.

Kidman, 39, appeared relaxed in a black and white dress topped with a black cardigan, while the 38-year-old country music superstar wore jeans and a light blue T-shirt.

The island resort is a preferred destination for superstars seeking to avoid the prying eyes of paparazzi and celebrity gawkers. It is also where Rolling Stones rocker Keith Richards injured his head after reportedly falling out of a palm tree in April.

However, Fiji was once a favored vacation spot for Kidman and her former husband, Tom Cruise, prompting speculation that she and Urban will opt instead for a luxury resort on Tahiti’s Bora Bora island.

Kidman, who was born in Hawaii to Australian parents, exchanged vows with Urban, who was born in New Zealand but raised in rural Queensland state, by the light of around 1,000 candles at a small chapel overlooking Sydney’s iconic Manly beach.

Kidman, accompanied by her father, Antony, smiled and waved to well-wishers outside the Gothic-style St. Patrick’s College building, which was dramatically floodlit for the twilight ceremony.

Urban wore a black suit with a white rose in his lapel matching a bouquet clutched by Kidman.

The traditional Roman Catholic ceremony was private, amid intense public interest and speculation about the details.

The longtime family friend and pastor who married the couple, Rev. Paul Coleman, told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that Kidman and Urban were both teary-eyed.

“But she got through her vows beautifully and so did Keith, but it was just such a human, touching, solemn, uplifting moment. That is the best way I can describe it,” he told Australia’s Nine television network.

The couple followed a traditional script with their vows, according to The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper, each promising to love and honor the other “in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health.”

“After they had kissed, and I said we’ll congratulate them as husband and wife in the normal fashion, the whole place erupted in a great round of applause with some cheers and joyous sounds,” the priest told ABC. “It was an explosion, really, and a wonderful moment.”

After the wedding Urban serenaded Kidman with an acoustic rendition of his song, “Making Memories of Us,” which brought even more tears to the actress’ eyes.

“Everyone was sitting round at their tables and he just walked up onto the stage unannounced and pulled out his guitar and sang this beautiful song,” television personality Jessica Rowe told the Nine network on Monday morning.

“I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house. She cried, everyone cried.”

The guests included a who’s who of Hollywood stars with long-standing Australian ties. Kidman’s childhood friend and fellow actress Naomi Watts was among the guests, along with Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe and “X-men” star Hugh Jackman. Australian-born media mogul Rupert Murdoch also attended with his wife, Wendi Deng.

Kidman won the best actress Oscar in 2002 for “The Hours” and Urban took home a Grammy this year for best male country vocalist.

It was Urban’s first marriage. Kidman and Cruise divorced in 2001 after 10 years of marriage.

Kidman has said she and Urban will set up home in Nashville, Tenn., when they return to the United States.